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Illinois Valley News, Cave Junction, OR Wednesday, October 13, 2004
There’s an old story that the reason Moses wan-
dered in the desert for 40 years is because he refused
to ask anyone for directions. My own father was like
that, and I have followed, so to speak, in his footsteps.
Or maybe in his tire tracks.
The problem with us men is that we do not like to
admit that we might not know something, especially
where we are going. So we roar off in all sorts of in-
correct directions, confident in mind that we know
exactly which road to take and where to turn. This has
gotten us in trouble for thousands of years. In fact,
some of us have been lost for thousands of years.
One reason I bring up direction is that in a page 1
caption last week, I became utterly confused and
wrote that two brush fires were south of Fort Hay
Ranch. Actually, they were northerly.
Moving right along, so to speak, I confess that my
worst times of having improper direction have oc-
curred in large cities including San Diego, Sacra-
mento, San Francisco, Portland and Seattle. First, I
am intimidated by the hordes of motor vehicles racing
this way and that, with all drivers knowing (I think)
exactly where they are headed.
Meanwhile, my faithful navigator and wife (same
person) will suggest, quietly at first and then with
greater volume and energy, that I stop and seek direc-
tions at: (a) a service station, (b) a real estate office,
(c) a quick-mart type store, or (d) anyplace, dang it,
just quit driving around aimlessly and muttering under
you breath. I, of course, choose (e) driving foolishly
for a couple of hours before choosing a service station
with employees who have lived there all their lives
but don’t know where anything is located.
My dad used to take us by car from San Diego to
El Paso, Texas via Flagstaff, Ariz. As near as I can
figure, this took about a day longer and many more
miles than necessary. I think it happened because we
always got lost in Phoenix, although he told me when
I was older that we went via Northern Arizona be-
cause the enjoyed the scenery. I’m still unsure. Dur-
ing one trip we had a horrible night drive because
somehow we went to Flagstaff via Show Low, at a
time when the road had been used for bombing prac-
tice or attacked by a squad of bulldozers.
My dad never got used to using new freeways in
San Diego, and insisted on using the old routes, in-
cluding congested surface streets. We had a couple of
arguments about it, which I won with the simple ex-
pediency of serving as chauffeur and basically ignor-
ing his protests.
Anyway, getting from Point A to Point B is espe-
cially tricky for a guy like me, who did not do well in
math or logic classes. (Still don’t, but that’s a whole
other direction.)
A bumper sticker never
changed the world. Vote: it’s the
simplest way to be heard
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Illinois Valley News
An Independent Weekly Newspaper Co-owned and
published by Robert R. (Bob) and Jan Rodriguez
Bob Rodriguez, Editor El Jefe
Entered as second class matter June 11, 1937 at Post
Office as Official Newspaper for Josephine County and
Josephine County Three Rivers School District, published
at 321 S. Redwood Hwy., Cave Junction, OR 97523
Periodicals postage paid at Cave Junction, OR 97523
Post Office Box 1370 USPS 258-820
Telephone (541) 592-2541, FAX (541) 592-4330
Volume 67, No. 30
Staff: Kacy Clement, Becky Loudon,
Michelle Binker, & Shane Welsh.
Paladin Business Services - Kina Perez
Member: Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association
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POLICY ON LETTERS: ‘Illinois Valley News’ welcomes letters to
the editor provided they are of general interest, in good taste,
legible and not libelous. All letters must be signed, using
complete name, and contain the writer’s address and telephone
number. The latter need not be published, but will be used to
verify authenticity. The ‘News’ reserves the right to edit letters.
One letter per person per month. Letters are used at the discretion
of the publisher. Unpublished letters are neither acknowledged
nor returned. A prepaid charge may be levied if a letter is
inordinately long in the editor's opinion.
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POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to
P.O. Box 1370, Cave Junction, OR. 97523
(Editor’s Note: Views and
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ters to the editor are strictly
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* * *
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Undecided
Christian voters?
From Cheryl DeBrett
Cave Junction
We should not find
even one undecided voter
among the Christian popu-
lation in this country.
As Christians we have
a responsibility to elect
government leaders based
on their positions on nu-
merous issues, including
five non-negotiable issues.
Abortion: This is the
intentional and direct kill-
ing of an innocent human
being, and therefore it is a
form of homicide. The
child is always an innocent
party, and no law may per-
mit the taking of this life.
Eu thanasi a: Even
though this often is de-
scribed as “mercy killing,”
it also is a form of homi-
cide. No one has a right to
take his own life (suicide),
and no one has the right to
take the life of any inno-
cent person.
Fetal stem cell re-
search: Recent scientific
advances show that any
medical cure that might
arise from experimentation
on fetal stem calls can be
developed by using adult
stem cells instead. Adult
stem cells can be obtained
without harming the adults
from whom they come.
Thus, there is no longer a
medical argument in favor
of using fetal stem cells.
Human cloning: This
ends as a form of homicide
because the “rejected” or
“unsuccessful” clones are
destroyed, yet each clone
is a human being.
Homosexual marriage:
True marriage is the union
of one man and one
woman. Legal recognition
of any other form of
“marriage” undermines
true marriage, and legal
recognition of homosexual
unions does homosexual
persons a disfavor by en-
couraging them to persist
in what is an objectively
immoral arrangement.
Any candidate who
favors even one of these
issues would not be a re-
sponsible choice for any
Christian. In the presiden-
tial race this year, one can-
didate opposes them all,
and the other favors them.
I am proud to be a
Christian, proud to be an
American, and proud to
pledge my support for
George W. Bush. I hope
that others will join me.
decent jobs and educa-
tional opportunity in this
country.
And especially for
those in need of health care
and something to believe
in again.
The late Sen. Paul
Wellstone’s book, “The
Conscience of a Liberal,”
gives as its inspiration,
“The Conscience of a Con-
servative,” by the late Sen.
Barry Goldwater.
Find out why. And
then get ready for the real
work that will begin on
Nov. 3, no matter what the
outcome is portrayed to be
this time around.
We need our Green
Party friends back to speak
up for the most disenfran-
chised of all; the one-
legged people, and the
planet itself.
The party was right to
effectively repudiate the
megalomaniac Nader this
time around. And because
of that resolve, it may well
emerge as a viable pro-
gressive third party soon.
You must know by this
time that all votes count.
Greed and religious
fanaticism on all sides are
at the core of the conflicts
we now face. It is time to
allow the common princi-
ples of compassion and
forgiveness to direct the
course of our common ex-
perience.
We should allow our
true spirituality to inform
our very important deci-
sion this November.
Operation Truth
From Joan Norman
Cave Junction
The letter from Bill
Reid (“Illinois Valley
News,” Oct. 6) was inter-
esting. He doesn't believe
that the letter from a sol-
dier in Iraq was a fact.
He
called
it
“purported.” Evidently he
has not seen the website,
Operation Truth.
Former Capt. David
Chasteen and 1st Lt. Paul
Rieckhoff, who still serves
in the Army National
Guard, hope to educate the
American people about the
truth about the wars in Iraq
and Afghanistan from the
perspective of soldiers who
are experiencing it. They
both served in the 3rd In-
fantry Division in Baghdad
early last year.
The website is
www.optruth.org, and in-
cludes many letters from
our military as a forum for
all the military serving in
Iraq, or just returned, to
tell their stories, post digi-
tal photos and complaints.
Operation Truth is a
nonprofit soldiers’ advo-
cacy group, which is non-
partisan, nonpolitical and
not affiliated with any po-
litical candidate.
Some issues addressed
to date include what they
call, “Stop Loss,” the in-
voluntary extension of ac-
tive-duty soldiers, whose
enlistment has ended.
They call this a back-
door draft. One comment
is that this action is de-
stroying the concept of a
voluntary military. It dam-
ages morale, and they say
that it is “just another indi-
cation that the original
plan for war was flawed.”
Another issue is “the
role of private contractors
in combat zones.” They
state that the relationship
that companies like Halli-
burton, KBR and Black-
water have with the mili-
tary is disturbing. They
maintain that this weakens
the military by drawing
away some of the most
experienced war-fighters
with offers of much higher
wages and better benefits.
Another issue that
bothers them is “The Vet-
erans Administration.”
They say that the VA
budget will be cut by
nearly $1 billion by 2006.
Also that the VA is closing
(Continued on page 3)
I LLINOIS V ALLEY
C OUNTY C OMMISSIONER
C ANDIDATE F ORUM
Presen ted by
Illinois Valley News
When: Wednesday, Oct. 20, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Where: Lorna Byrne Middle School
6:30-7 p.m. Meet the Candidate
This will be an informal opportunity for the citizens
to mix and meet candidates individually. Citizens
also can take this opportunity to submit questions
for candidates on index cards.
7-7:10 Welcome and Ground Rules
7:10-7:20 Candidates’ Opening Remarks
Position2: Jim Brock - 3 min.
Jim Raffenburg - 3 min.
Position 3: Dwight Ellis - 3 min.
Cherryl Walker - 3 min.
7:20-8:20 Questions for Candidates
Each candidate will have a maximum of 2 minutes
to answer each question. Questions will be
screened to minimize redundancy and ensure
they are relevant to the position of Josephine
County commissioner. Questions will be directed
to candidates as evenly as possible.
8:20-8:30 Candidates Closing Remarks
Candidates will be limited to 2 minutes, order to
be determined by coin toss.
8:30 Good-night
Another possible source of guidance for
teen-agers is television, but television’s
message has always been that the need for
truth, wisdom and world peace pales by
comparison with a need for a toothpaste that
offers whiter teeth and fresher breath.
- Dave Barry -
‘Do the write thing’
From Charles Greenwood
Cave Junction
We need our Republi-
can friends back to speak
up for true conservative
values including small
business, fiscal responsi-
bility, and especially de-
fense of the Constitution.
This time, pick some-
one who embodies honesty
and integrity like John
McCain, Pat Buchanan, or
even Anthony Zinni, and
write their name on your
ballot. You know in your
heart that the names at the
top of your ticket no longer
deserve your respect or
your support.
We need our Democ-
ratic friends back to speak
up for the average working
person, union protected or
not, and those thirsting for
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